Bush's future for America is in Iraq today

[MetaTrope]

Don't know if this has been discussed yet, but River's blog for this week offers a striking look at the impression Americans are making in Baghdad...and it sounds like what's happening is in line with the junta's plan for America in the near future. To wit:

What people find particularly frustrating is the fact that while Baghdad seems to be falling apart in so many ways with roads broken and pitted, buildings blasted and burnt out and residential areas often swimming in sewage, the Green Zone is flourishing. The walls surrounding restricted areas housing Americans and Puppets have gotten higher- as if vying with the tallest of date palms for height. The concrete reinforcements and road blocks designed to slow and impede traffic are now a part of everyday scenery- the road, the trees, the shops, the earth, the sky… and the ugly concrete slabs sometimes wound insidiously with barbed wire.

The price of building materials has gone up unbelievably, in spite of the fact that major reconstruction has not yet begun. I assumed it was because so much of the concrete and other building materials was going to reinforce the restricted areas. A friend who recently got involved working with an Iraqi subcontractor who takes projects inside of the Green Zone explained that it was more than that. The Green Zone, he told us, is a city in itself. He came back awed, and more than a little bit upset. He talked of designs and plans being made for everything from the future US Embassy and the housing complex that will surround it, to restaurants, shops, fitness centers, gasoline stations, constant electricity and water- a virtual country inside of a country with its own rules, regulations and government. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Republic of the Green Zone, also known as the Green Republic.

“The Americans won’t be out in less than ten years.” Is how the argument often begins with the friend who has entered the Green Republic. “How can you say that?” Is usually my answer- and I begin to throw around numbers- 2007, 2008 maximum… Could they possibly want to be here longer? Can they afford to be here longer? At this, T. shakes his head- if you could see the bases they are planning to build- if you could see what already has been built- you’d know that they are going to be here for quite a while.

The Green Zone is a source of consternation and aggravation for the typical Iraqi. It makes us anxious because it symbolises the heart of the occupation and if fortifications and barricades are any indicator- the occupation is going to be here for a long time. It is a provocation because no matter how anyone tries to explain or justify it, it is like a slap in the face. It tells us that while we are citizens in our own country, our comings and goings are restricted because portions of the country no longer belong to its people. They belong to the people living in the Green Republic.

[Mythsaje]

1. Oh, lovely... n/t

nominated

[Wash. state Desk Jet]

2. Bush,s war

Why is it Bush,s war? It started with Nixon. Why would anyone think it is Bush,s war? Bush told the republician king pins he would do it for them, they in turn said fine you let us handle your campaign and so than George Bush. So why would anybody think it is Bush,s war? Or you might wonder just who are they!

[Mythsaje]

3. Welcome to DU!

Oh, it goes a lot farther back than Bush...agreed. But this is his game.

[truth2power]

4. The description of the Green Zone

is accurate. There was footage of inside the Green Zone on Frontline this week - the program about the contractors in Iraq. I was appalled to see the Americans bragging about their comforts - A/C, generators for electricity, all the clean water they want, good food, entertainment, movies etc.

I was thinking that the Iraqi people are just trying to survive, while those who invaded their homeland are living in luxury.

This is a sin! More karma for America, eventually. :-(

And the brain-dead tools will say, "How could this happen to us? We're so good and god-fearing." Yeah...

edit for stupid typo